The present invention relates to the field of information directories. More specifically, the present invention relates to a computer-based information directory system.
Computers are finding new applications as a result of advances in hardware technology and rapid development in software technology and are being used in a wide variety of different applications, such as in finance, commercial transactions, computer-aided design and manufacturing, health-care, telecommunication, education, etc. A computer system""s functionality is dramatically enhanced by coupling stand-alone computers together to form a computer network where users may readily exchange files, share information stored on a common database, pool resources, and communicate via electronic mail (e-mail) and via video teleconferencing.
The internet, which is a world-wide network of computers, has gained widespread popularity and use in the past decade. A large segment of the population has access to the internet, and nearly every one of them has an e-mail address to which e-mail messages may be sent. In order to facilitate internet users fully to exploit the usefulness of electronic communication, electronic information directories, which are also known as electronic white pages, are also widely used. These information directories store the telephone numbers, e-mail addresses and other publicly available information in a central storage location and provide public access to these information via the internet or other computer network technologies. Examples of these public information directories may be found at http:  www.whowhere.com and http:  www.four11.com. It is believed that such electronic information directories will replace traditional telephone books as the primary source of such information in the near future.
In most of the aforementioned electronic information directories, entries are arranged in a hierarchical treelike structure that reflects political, geographic, and/or organizational boundaries. Prior art FIG. 1 illustrates an example of such a hierarchical tree 10. As shown, entries within the information directory or xe2x80x9ctreexe2x80x9d 10 are organized according to their attributes such as xe2x80x9ccountry,xe2x80x9d xe2x80x9cstate,xe2x80x9d xe2x80x9ctelephone area code,xe2x80x9d xe2x80x9ccity,xe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cname.xe2x80x9d Because the entries are organized hierarchically, computer search engines do not have to go through each and every record in the information directory to retrieve the desired information. Rather, a large number of entries which do not include the requisite attributes can be ignored during a search.
Although the hierarchical organization model 10 is well suited for its intended purposes, accessing such an information directory can sometimes be difficult. For instance, a search using search criteria that are too broad may yield multiple results. Another disadvantage of information directories based on the hierarchical organization model is that contents of the directory change constantly. People move, change their internet service provider, or change their telephone numbers all the time. Accordingly, much effort has to be expended to bring the information directory current. A system administrator or another data entry professional constantly needs to update the e-mail addresses and telephone numbers supplied by the telephone companies and internet service providers into the directory periodically. Users, on the other hand, normally do not have the capabilities to modify their own entries. A user wishing to change his directory entry must notify the system administrator and wait for the system administrator to make the corrections for him using a manual process.
Another limitation of hierarchical treelike directories is that they do not provide intuitive and natural ways for users to search the entries. In those information directory systems, a user performing a search must input specific information about an entry, such as name and address, in order to locate that particular entry or other attributes about that entry. Oftentimes, however, a user may lack sufficient information to locate the entry. In that situation, the user would not be able to retrieve the desired information.
Therefore, there exists a need for a directory system that allows a user to access directory entries in an intuitive and natural manner, and a directory system that does not require maintenance and updates by a system administrator. The present invention is a novel solution to the aforementioned problems with prior art hierarchical tree based information directories.
The present invention provides for a method of and system for organizing entries of a self-propagating information directory based on relationships between the users. Further, the present invention provides for a method of adding new directory entries to the information directory without intervention by a system administrator. According to one embodiment of the present invention, new entries are created by existing users who have existing entries in the information directory. Significantly, an existing user is allowed to access and modify contents of his own directory entry. The existing user may then submit a profile regarding a new user to the information directory system to create a new entry for the new user.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, when an existing user submits the profile of a new user, the information is stored in a relationship list within the existing user""s entry. When the existing user""s entry is accessed, the profile of the existing user and his relationship list will be displayed. Further, according to one embodiment of the present invention, a new relationship list is created within the new user""s directory entry. When the new entry is accessed, the profile of the new user and her relationship list will be displayed.
In furtherance of one embodiment of the present invention, when an existing user submits a new user profile to the information directory system, the existing user may specify a relationship type between the existing user and the new user. The specified relationship type or xe2x80x9cconnectionxe2x80x9d is stored in the relationship list within the existing user""s entry and is displayed when the existing user""s entry is accessed. In one embodiment, the information directory system automatically converts the relationship type specified by the existing user and generates a reciprocal relationship type or reciprocal connection. The reciprocal relationship type is stored in the relationship list within the new user""s entry, and is displayed when the new user""s entry is accessed. Preferably, the relationship types describe an actual relationship between the existing user and the new user, such as employer-employee or husband-wife. According to one embodiment, the number of different relationship types is predetermined, and users are required to select the appropriate relationship type from a menu. Once created, a xe2x80x9cconnectionxe2x80x9d may be deleted by its creator.
In one embodiment of the present invention, relationship information stored within a relationship list is accessible by any user of the information directory system. However, in another embodiment, users may designate the relationship information as private. Relationship information designated as private will not be displayed to anyone who accesses the directory entry. Rather, the private relationship information is only accessible by users described in the private relationship information.
In one embodiment of the present invention, new users are notified via an e-mail message when new directory entries have been created. Preferably, the e-mail message includes an URL address of the new entry such that the new entry may be conveniently accessed. In furtherance of the present invention, contents of a user""s own directory entry are maintained and controlled by the user himself. In this way, the information directory will be able to provide the most up-to-date information regarding the user to the public.
These and other advantages of the present invention will not doubt be apparent to those ordinary skilled in the art upon reading the following detailed description of the present invention.